Some 1,800 petitions were filed today with the Hoboken city clerk to move the municipal elections to November, according a community group calling itself Vote Yes For November.

If certified, the petitions will put two measures on the ballot this November that proponents say will save taxpayers money, increase voter participation and make the job of voting less onerous for voters, said Vijay Chaudhuri, a member of the citizens' committee.

The first measure asks Hoboken voters if they want to move municipal election day to November, and the second asks voters whether they want to change the elections to system in which the person with the most votes simply wins and does not need more than 50 percent of the vote.

“Consolidating the municipal elections to when voters are already voting in November would not only result in greater voter participation and less hassle for voters, but also save taxpayers over $100,000 for each election saved," Chaudhuri said in a statement.

Supporters of the measure point out that there were five elections in eight months in 2009.

Currently candidates have to get at least 50 percent of the vote to avoid a run-off.

Chaudhuri said the initiative would help reduce the campaign literature, advertisements, and phone calls associated with the elections.

If a majority of Hoboken residents vote 'yes' on the two propositions, Hoboken’s next municipal election would be held in November of 2013.

Next year, the change would affect Mayor Dawn Zimmer and three council members at large, Ravinder Bhalla, Carol March and David Mello, whose terms would otherwise end in June 30, 20103 -- potentially giving them an additional six months longer in office before facing re-election.

The two petition questions required approximately 640 signatures to reach the ballot.

The Hoboken Board of Education has already voted to move the elections to November.